The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1887-11-12
GUILTY OR NOT GUILTY
GUsTAVE MILLER ON TRIAL ON THE
CHARGE OF MURDER.
The Story Of the Crime.-The Defendant
The Testimony In the Case.


was thrown into u state of high excitement
over the discovery Of the body Of Frances
Kasha, pretty little Polish girl, in an old,
unused well, under deserted house on Eighth
street. near the residence of E. G. Hegeler,
This was on Saturday, the 18th OF June, and
the girl had been missing from her home
since the evening Of the 9th She wore, at
the time OF the discovery, a red and blue
dress, and it was torn in one place, as though
it had been caught on bush. Coroner Glen
DENIM was called, and consultation had OF
physicians, and coroner's jury held Gustave
Miller for murder. The little girls head was,
after careful examination, found to be liter
ally split open from the forehead to tie base
OF the brain.
It was discovered that Miller had been work
ing within few rods of the well on the even
ing when the girl disappeared. This was made
evident afferward by his own confession, that
the children, the Kasha girl in particular, had
been teasing him on that date. 1t was also
discoveIed that Miller had been trimming
hedge that evening, and had used heavy
hedge knife, which could easily have effected
the fracture in question; and it was thought
that it was the only weapon that could have
done so. Detectives were set to work on the
case and discovered that Miller was seen to
throw Il bundle, done up in old and blue cloth,
into the deserted house, on the evening in
question, and that on the next day piece of
red flannel, such as made up the girls attire,
was found hanging from the bushes. Again,
pair of Mlller's pants, having on the seat
the imprint of pair of bloody hands, were
discovered in the deserted house. These were
sent to Chicago to have the bloody spots an
alyzed.
Miller was indicted for murder at the June
term of the grand jury and placed in muir.
derers' row, in the upper tier of cells, across
from the cell which Boiler occupied month
later
Miller was born in Germany about 45 years
ago. At the usual age he entered the Prus-
sian army and by efficient service raised him.
self to the rank Of sergeant. He was sta
toned at Berlin, and it is charged that in De-
cember Of 1852 he and several others commit
ted the horrible crime of rape on respecta-
BILE young lady of that city; that for the crime
Miller was sentenced to four years in prison,
and after serving two years and half OF his
time, escaped in April of 1885 and came to
America, leaving, it is also charged, wife,
who is now ignorant of his whereabouts. He
drifted into La Sale, and was employed by
MIR. Hegeler as gardener. There he became
the husband of another wife, with whom he
lived at the time of the tragedy. He had
borne an excellent character in La Sale, and
no one could say word against him. He is
a tall broad shouldered and heavily built man,
weighing, perhaps, 200 pounds. He wears a
full beard, light brown in color, and his hair OF
the same color is cut short. His skin is,
from his long confinement, unnaturally fair
| and his cold blue eye is not pleasant to gaze
into. His forehead is broad and high, and
| gives him fine appearance, but the nose and
the lower part of the face, which is heavily
marked with the phrenologists' "lines Of cru
city," suggest deep animal instincts. His pres
ent wife, a frail woman of 35 years, sits be-
side him on the trial, and shows considerable
anxiety. She was quietly but neatly dressed
in a suit of brown. Miller wore, during the
trial, mixed wool suit and black tie, while
his shoes were carefully brushed.
The whole of Monday afternoon was con.
sumed in the selection of three jurors. Par.
ticular attention, it would seem, was paid by
the prosecution to accept none but American
born men, and by the defense to take no one
whose countenance indicated a strong person
al character. On Tuesday the number of jul
rors had been increased to eight. The re-
naming jurors were selected by Wednesday
afternoon at 2:15 o'clock. The jury are:
Silas Cartwright, Vermillion; Job Curtiss
Jr., Hope; Albert Hallowell, Rutland; Her
man Jordan, Alex. Hanna, Geo. Mills, Oscar
Tremper, Frank Fishburn, M e. Brown, South
Ottawa; j. H. Moore, Joseph Atkinson, Otta
wa; r. Martin, Freedom.
very intelligent appearing set OF men
and a jury which the careful and patient
course of the prosecution and defense was
well rewarded in securing.
| Mr.. Moloney, in opening for the state, made
truly artistic and finished effort. He de
lineated, with the use Of a chart, the location
of the house and well, so prominent in the
tragedy, and the surrounding houses, from
which the result Of view of the scene coulc
be attained. He said that in criminal practice
the defendant was entitled to every reasonable
doubt in the case, but that that reasonable
doubt was not mountain over which The
prosecution would be compelled to climb, bu
merely II common every day matter, made
balloon like by the attorneys for every rasca
ever brought to the bar of justice. "The vic
tim had, with her playmates, been in the com
pany of Miller on the evening of the tragedy
the little Kasha girl remaining with Miller
Her mother sent after her three times, and the
last time she and Miller had disappeared. He
| was seen the next morning, carrying bundle
into the deserted house, and after staying
there half hour emerged and locked the
door. There was no other egress to the house
excepting that door, for all the other doors
| and windows were boarded up, and Miller
held the key. The girl was dead when placed
| in the well; her head had been fractured"
Before the opening statements were begun
the space inside the bar was filled with attor
neys, and every available seat in the audito